Scarcity of Latino Foster Homes Leads to Mismatches

Malnourished and looking like what Ruth Hanning called “a starving Biafran child,” Arturo was just 15 months old when he went to live at Hanning’s ranch-style Yorba Linda home in the spring of 1979.

The boy had been placed in Orange County’s foster care program after his parents, both new immigrants from Mexico, separated. To make ends meet, the mother had taken a job in Santa Ana and had been forced to leave Arturo (not his real name) in the care of his 4- and 6-year-old sisters while she worked during the day.

“It was not a case of abuse,” Hanning recalled. “The family loved him. It was a case of poverty. I was asked to care for him while his family got back on its feet.”

Two and a half years passed and Arturo thrived under the care of Hanning and her two natural children, seeing his parents only occasionally. He began to walk, speak and gradually began to understand the conversation around him.

But in what was otherwise an ideal setting, there was one glaring problem in Arturo’s placement: he was a Latino child reared in an Anglo household, and when he was returned to his reunited mother and father--he was almost 4 years old by then--he understood absolutely no Spanish.

Parents Shocked

“I think the parents were quite shocked when they learned their son didn’t speak their own language,” said Hanning, who has taken in 11 foster children over the past nine years. “Here they were finally getting their child back, and they couldn’t talk to him. It was a year and a half before he learned enough Spanish to talk to his own parents. His sisters had to act as interpreters.”

Social workers say Arturo’s case dramatizes one of the biggest problems facing the Orange County Social Services Agency: a critical shortage of foster parents, and an even greater need for Latino foster homes.

“We are always looking for Latino families, but the fact that we do have such a shortage means we can’t always make a very good match,” said Barbara Labitzke, foster home development coordinator for the county and executive director of the Southern Area Fostercare Effort, which coordinates foster care in an eight-county area.

“We always look for a continuity of culture, if possible,” she said. “Being put in a foster home is traumatic enough for a child. There can be further stress if they are put in a home where the smells in the kitchen are different, the ways of eating are different and what they eat is different. Much less the language.”

Labitzke said that of the 2,200 Orange County children who social workers may be working with at any one time--some are put in foster homes, others in group homes and still others are put up for permanent adoption--as many as 40% may be Latino.

At the same time, there is a stable of only about 650 licensed foster homes in the county, and the overwhelming majority of them are Anglo. Moreover, the problem seems to be getting worse as the Latino population grows because of immigration and higher birth rates in the Latino community.

And while there is always a shortage of foster parents of all races, Labitzke and other experts say foster parenting can be a particularly hard sell among Latinos. They note that:

* The concept of temporary custody, which can last from several hours to several years, is foreign to many Latin cultures. In Mexico, for example, the government rarely takes children away from their family, and when it does, the child is placed with relatives.

* The foster-home system is often bureaucratic, confusing and intimidating, especially for new immigrants.

* Many Latino families may not have the room or economic means to be able to support a foster child even with the roughly $300 to $400 monthly per-child supplement.

Although Latino children are routinely placed in Anglo households, as in Arturo’s case, Labitzke and other experts stress that only Latino foster homes can ensure that Latino youngsters maintain a healthy regard for their own culture and language.

“Even with a sensitive (Anglo) placement, there can be a racism that the foster parents might not even be aware of,” said Marvin Southard, an East Los Angeles psychologist. “Problems could arise where things Anglo are inadvertently labeled as good and things Latino are labeled as bad.”

Rito and Margarita Corrales, an Anaheim couple, are the kind of people that Labitzke has been looking for to serve as Latino foster parents.

Born in East Los Angeles of Mexican heritage--he has relatives in Chihuahua--Corrales is a Santa Ana attorney specializing in immigration and general practice. His wife’s parents are from the central Mexican state of Michoacan.

Cultural Consistency

Now on their third pair of foster girls, the Corraleses have seen firsthand the need for a certain amount of cultural consistency.

“It is very difficult for a child to come into a new home, so we always try to make it easier on them,” Margarita Corrales said. “Around here, I always include beans and tortillas in our diet. We shop at the Mexican grocery in Santa Ana, and I keep Spanish language radio on all day.”

“When I first got our girls, one of them saw me in the kitchen and asked for a tortilla. She wanted a corn tortilla, not flour, and I had both. Another time she wanted some more chili. They ask me for menudo . These are little things, but they are important. There is a need to be culturally meshed.”

The family also adheres to traditional Mexican customs in celebrating holidays and other events. And they express affection in a typically Latino manner.

“We hug kids a lot and tell them how pretty they are. Mexican people are like that,” Margarita Corrales said. “We like to show a lot of affection toward our kids, a lot more so than (Anglos) do. It is something very natural to us. And I think Latino children expect that.”

On the other hand, the first pair of girls sent to the Corrales were Anglos, and long after they’ve left, they remain close.

“They have been reunited with their father,” Margarita Corrales said. “I still baby-sit for them once in awhile. But if I could choose, I would have Latinos. One time, we were thinking about taking in two Anglo children and we had lunch with them. I speak with an accent, and one kept turning to me and saying, ‘What did you say?’ They didn’t understand me.”

Labitzke sees it in terms of “making it as easy as possible for the child. It isn’t always a question of how much love you can give.

“Not every family is cooking tortillas in the kitchen every day. The smells can be so important, as is the language. Sometimes the natural parents may not speak English at all, and even if you have a foster family with a Latino surname, they may not be able to speak Spanish. And then you might have a Caucasian family that speaks Spanish fluently but they don’t provide the same kind of cultural setting.”

With the help of Manuel Jiminez, a full-time recruiter for the Los Angeles Department of Children’s Services, Orange County has launched a major effort to recruit more Latino foster parents.

Posters and literature are now being printed in both English and Spanish and distributed in heavily Latino areas, and Labitzke and others spend their Sundays at Latino churches, spreading the word about foster care.

In a typical period from January through August, Labitzke said, 252 Anglo children were referred for foster care in Orange County as opposed to 172 Latinos, 27 blacks and 15 of Asian descent.

More Homes Needed

Labitzke said the local figures are matching those statewide. California has seen a 25% increase in the number of children needing foster care over the past two years.

“There have been increases in child abuse and children who come to us because of alcohol or drug abuse in the families,” she said. “We just need more places and beds to put these children.”

In Ruth Hanning’s home, there is a hand-sewn pillow with the names of Arturo and 10 other children stitched into little red hearts. Each one represents a foster child Hanning has taken in, and each one represents a special child.

In Arturo’s case, Hanning said, she “brushed up on my Spanish” but conceded that if he had been placed in a Latino household, “maybe he would have been able to return to his family easier.”

“I just did my best and gave him all the love I could, and in that way I think I succeeded.”

Times staff writer George Ramos contributed to this story.

FOSTER CARE AT A GLANCE

HOW MANY:

About 2,200 at any one time, serviced by the Orange County Social Services Agency; some in foster homes, others in group homes and still others placed with relatives. About 650 foster care homes in county.

60,270 statewide, as of last May; a 25% increase in the past two years. Average age: 8.4.

ETHNIC BREAKDOWN, ORANGE COUNTY:

September ‘86-September ‘87: 53% Caucasian, 37% Hispanic, 7% black, 3% Asian and .5% other.

January-August ‘88: 252 Caucasian children referred for foster care, 172 Latinos, 27 blacks, 15 Asians.

CHILD ABUSE AS CAUSE:

Child abuse, which accounts for a large number of children being placed in foster homes, is growing locally and statewide. Child abuse cases in Orange County jumped 32% among Caucasians and 28% among Latino children for the first six months this year, in contrast with the same period last year.

LENGTH OF FOSTER PLACEMENT:

About 20.1 months, statewide--20% longer than two years ago.

About 55% of all foster children are eventually reunited with their families.

Source: Orange County Social Services Agency

FOSTER CARE IN ORANGE COUNTY The majority of foster care home placements in Orange County are handled by the Orange County Social Services Agency. Some of the programs are:

FOSTER CARE PROGRAM Telephone: (714) 532-7777

Provides information on their general foster care program and programs that offer assistance to children with special needs.

Employs licensing and social workers who speak Spanish and can provide translation assistance for those interested in any of their programs.

MEDICAL/HIGH RISK UNIT Telephone: (714) 532-7714 Babies with serious health problems, including those born with AIDS or drug dependencies are placed through this agency.

Other programs ORANGE COUNTY PROBATION DEPARTMENT Telephone: (714) 834-6941

Minors who have committed criminal offenses and are on probation are placed in homes through a program run by the Probation Department.

OLIVE CREST HOME-FINDING AGENCY Telephone: (714) 777-4999

This private, nonprofit organization accepts referrals from the Orange County Social Services Agency, including children with emotional or medical handicaps.